Just do it

Have you ever been in the kind of situation where you’ve been wanting for a while – maybe all week – to do some good, and then finally when you get the chance you’ve been waiting for, you get so consumed with fear that your desires shrink up and you don’t do much of anything? That’s a bit where I was today. Sure, I did some things I wanted: I wished a friend a happy almost birthday (or “almost happy birthday” as I sort of accidentally said), I greeted some folks, and I did a relatively good job leading worship for the Sr. High. But there were so many people that over the week I’ve wanted to converse with or simply be kind to and say “hey [insert person’s name here]” to that I just shied away from.

My fears swallowed up my desires. That’s not how I want to live.

Something inside me tells me it’s wrong. As a Christian, I know that God has not given me a spirit of fear (Romans 8:15). He is the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6) and the “God of all comfort” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4). And how many times does the Bible say “don’t be afraid” or “fear not”?

Funny thing is, when my dad invited me to come talk to one of the people at church – one of the many people I had been avoiding – I felt perfectly fine, and I felt that that’s where I was supposed to be. I love having those nice conversations with people. The thing is getting to that place.

I think it’s a bit like performing in front of an audience – you gotta just do it, even though you may be afraid. To go ahead and do what you believe is right even though you’re scared stiff shows – I believe – real faith. Hopefully that faith is in God and not yourself, but still it’s a great thing to do. As I’ve read from Derek Sivers, “Whatever scares you or excites you, go do it.” That may not be entirely true, but I think it holds some value. Often it’s best to get outside our comfort zones. If we’re always stuck in our comfort zones, we’ll never change much; we’ll never grow much.

So, whatever circumstance you’re going through, whatever fears you have, if you have an inkling somewhere inside of what is good and right and true – if it’s not contrary to God’s Word (the Bible) – my thought is, just do it. Don’t wait for an invitation like I did. Just go out and do it.